I recently took some time off to work on some personal projects. I can’t reveal much now but I’m so excited. I will share more later 🙂 I love a good dim sum breakfast on weekends. Now it’s not possible to dine in restaurants because of the lockdown. So I made ‘baozi’ 包子 (or ‘bao’), yeast-leavened buns with various sweet or savoury fillings.
These are ‘liu sha bao’ 流沙包, buns filled with salted egg yolks. They have a molten lava, custardy texture. It’s the most indulgent breakfast or snack I can think of. The dough has to be moist, soft and fluffy, wrapped around a thick velvety yolk. Eating it is an experience, for when you break open the bao, the hot and gritty salted egg custard comes oozing out.
When I made these, I wasn’t in a hurry to bake. The dough had a good rest. My box of instant active yeast was mouldy, so I replaced it. It must have helped the baos to rise so beautifully. The filling is just steamed salted egg yolks mixed with butter, icing sugar, custard powder, milk powder and evaporated milk. Once I’ve shaped them, they go into the steamer.
I love the sweet milky, melt-in-the-mouth taste of the bao skin. Full cream milk just gives it extra flavour. Some people like the filling more runny, so they increase the quantity of evaporated milk. But I like it less flowy.
What kind of flour to use?
There are two types of flour, self-raising or bao flour. I prefer bao flour as the texture is super soft. It’s the most ideal type of flour for making baos, as you get consistent results.
You can find the recipe below. We loved it so much, we’ve had several for breakfast and tea.
Dim Sum Style Liu Sha Bao (Molten Custard Salted Egg Buns)
Equipment
- Steamer
- Silicone dim sum paper
Ingredients
For the dough
- 391 g self-raising flour or bao flour sifted, room temperature
- 68 g caster sugar sifted
- 3.9 g baking powder or 0.91 tsp equivalent
- 4.6 g instant active yeast or 1 tsp equivalent (ensure your yeast is fresh)
- 173 ml full cream milk brought to room temperature
- 27 ml water
- 4 tbsp vegetable oil
For the filling
- 4 salted egg yolks
- 91 g unsalted butter I use Golden Churn butter
- 64 g icing sugar sifted
- 36 g custard powder
- 55 g full cream milk powder
- 2 tbsp evaporated milk or condensed milk
Instructions
- Steam the salted egg yolks for 20-25 minutes or until they turn a bright orange colour. Once done, remove from the steamer and mash them with a large knife or cleaver until it becomes fine crumbs that you can easily mould into a paste.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the butter, icing sugar, custard powder, milk powder, evaporated milk and the egg yolk paste earlier. Using your hands or a rubber spatula, mix until well combined. Shape into a rough ball.
- Put the bowl into the fridge for 20-25 minutes to firm up.
- Remove from the fridge and form the paste into small balls, about 3cm wide. As they contain butter, they'll melt so you will need to return them to the fridge again while you make the bread.
- Sift the flour and shape them into a rough mound. Make a well in the center then add yeast, caster sugar, baking powder, milk and water. Using your hands, gently combine together until they form a workable dough. Note: Add the liquids alternately, 2 tbsps of each while you mix the ingredients together. Knead for 20 minutes.
- Pour the oil onto the dough and knead for another 10 minutes until it turns smooth and waxy. If the dough feels dry, add a little water. Likewise, if it's too wet, dust with some extra flour. Just remember not to overwork the dough; once you've formed a basic dough you must let it rest. Transfer to a bowl, cover with a clean towel and let the dough rest for 30 minutes.
- Cut silicone dim sum paper into 10cm x 10cm squares. Set aside.
- Once the dough has risen in the bowl, it should feel smooth, soft and pliable. Dust your table with some flour then punch the dough down firmly and knead for 2 minutes.
- Divide into 10 portions equally (you can use a weighing scale to ensure they all weigh the same). Roll them into balls. Transfer to a large tray and cover with a towel to prevent drying out.
- Take one dough and gently press it flat, then with a rolling pin roll it to about 5mm thickness and 12cm width. It's alright if the dough is slightly thick as this would prevent the filling from running out during cooking. Cover the unused doughs with a towel.
- Remove the filling from the fridge. Place one in the center of the flattened bread dough. Using your hands, wrap the dough around the filling. Seal the opening at the top by bringing the ruffled parts together with your thumb and index finger. Twist the seal close and push it to flatten. Place the ball on the square silicon paper with the sealed side facing down.
- Allow the buns to rest for 10 minutes before steaming them.
- Steam on medium heat for 10 minutes. Avoid high heat as the insides of the bun may start leaking out during the steaming process.
Notes
If you made this dish, let me know by tagging @saveurmalaisie on Instagram.
